PUTRAJAYA (Aug 10): The Federal Court said on Wednesday (Aug 10) that the hearing of former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak's application to adduce further evidence in his RM42 million SRC International Sdn Bhd case to nullify the trial in which he was convicted to spend 12 years in jail, will proceed as scheduled next Monday.

This comes after both the prosecution and defence agreed to exchange written submissions on Wednesday.

The defence will begin by amending the notice of motion to adduce evidence and make submissions with regard to trial judge Datuk Mohd Nazlan Mohd Ghazali for three hours, after which the prosecution will also be given three hours to reply.

Should the application to adduce further evidence be dismissed on the same day, the apex court will proceed to hear Najib's appeal over his conviction and sentence in the SRC case.

This was decided by Federal Court deputy registrars Wan Fatimah Zahara Wan Yussof and Siti Hajar Mustaffa, who presided over the trial's case management on Wednesday.

Najib's new lawyers Hisyam Teh Poh Teik, Liew Teck Huat and Rueben Mathiavaranam are expected to make an oral application to adjourn the hearing of the former premier's appeal as they have informed the court that they are not ready to continue with the main appeal on the basis that this is no ordinary case.

"If the court insists for the main appeal to proceed, then the counsels will have no choice but to discharge themselves from representing the applicant (Najib)," said a source familiar with the matter.

The Edge has attempted to confirm the above with Hisyam and Datuk Zaid Ibrahim of Messrs Zaid Ibrahim Suflan TH Liew and Partners — the law firm of Liew and Rueben. But at press time, neither has responded. 

The prosecution was represented by ad hoc prosecutor Datuk V Sithambaram and deputy public prosecutor Mohd Ashrof Adrin Kamarul.

While both the prosecution and defence have earlier agreed to exchange, on the same day, their written submissions for the appeal on adducing further evidence for the SRC case, it is understood that Najib's defence team has yet to submit their written submissions for the main appeal.

They had been given until Monday (Aug 8) by the apex court to provide the written submissions. This was decided during the previous case management on July 28.

Hisyam, Liew and Rueben took over Najib's final SRC appeal from senior lawyer Tan Sri Muhammad Shafee Abdullah.

The former Barisan Nasional chairman discharged Messrs Shafee & Co from representing him on July 25, after his team had, earlier that month, failed to secure the admission of Queen's counsel Jonathan Laidlaw to help him in his SRC case.

Shafee, however, continues to represent Najib in two other trials in relation to 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB).

The former premier was found guilty by Nazlan on July 28, 2020, of one charge of abuse of power with regard to the approval of a loan totalling RM4 billion from Retirement Fund Inc to SRC. He was also found guilty of three counts each of criminal breach of trust (CBT), and money laundering involving RM42 million of SRC funds.

For the power abuse offence, he was sentenced to 12 years in jail and fined RM210 million. He was also sentenced to 10 years in jail for each of the CBT and money laundering charges. Nazlan had ordered that the jail terms run concurrently.

Najib's conviction and sentence was upheld by the Court of Appeal on Dec 8 last year, which resulted in this final appeal to the Federal Court.

Besides the SRC case, Najib has two other ongoing 1MDB-related trials, including the 1MDB audit tampering trial. In the other case, he is facing 21 money laundering charges and four counts of abuse of power involving RM2.28 billion of 1MDB funds.

He has two other 1MDB-linked trials that have yet to start, one of which is another money laundering case involving SRC funds, this one worth RM27 million. In the other case, Najib — together with former treasury secretary general Tan Sri Mohd Irwan Serigar Abdullah — faces six CBT charges involving the payment of RM6.64 billion of government funds to the International Petroleum Investment Corporation.